“With the Spain striker, Chelsea were a horrible, aggressive team to play against. They would use every trick in the book to win matches.

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Antonio Conte is under increasing pressure at Chelsea

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Jamie Redknapp cites Antonio Conte's decision to axe Diego Costa as the catalyst to his problems

“You could not bully Costa but without him, this Chelsea team are too nice.

“They have lost not only their edge but also their ruthlessness in front of goal. After a bright start, striker Alvaro Morata has struggled and Chelsea have scored nine fewer goals than at the same stage last season.

“Think back to that string of stalemates at the turn of the year. Those could have been avoided with a forward like Costa, who specialised in grabbing those crucial goals in tight games.”